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PHOTO: Brie Holmes of Portland Water District and Lee Dassler of Western Foothills Land Trust explore the recently acquired tract of land in Otisfield. (Submitted photo)
NORWAY – Western Foothills Land Trust has acquired three forested parcels protecting 100 acres in the Sebago Lake Watershed.
Acquired on March 23, the parcels are near the Crooked River in Otisfield and Norway. The acquisitions will protect recreational access, fisheries resources, wildlife habitat, and drinking water quality for more than 200,000 drinking water customers in the greater Portland region.
The land is adjacent to the 252-acre Twin Bridges Preserve, and part of a larger project set to close this spring that will preserve more than 1,000 contiguous acres. To be called Twin Bridges Extension, the trust plans to establish a parking area with kiosk, trailhead, and non-motorized trails next year.
Harriet Robinson donated one parcel, nearly 20 acres, predominantly wetlands, with bog-shoreline on Little Pond in Otisfield. The second parcel, 59 acres north of Route 117 in Otisfield, was sold to the trust by Joan Cummings, of Norway. Cummings also donated an adjacent 20-acre woodlot across the Norway town line. Together, the three parcels protect 3,500 feet of brook trout habitat, 1,000 feet of pond shoreline, and more than 30 acres of wetlands.
Because of the wetlands protection involved, the Maine Natural Resource Conservation Program provided support for the acquisitions, along with the Maine Community Foundation, Portland Water District, Sebago Clean Waters, Casco Bay Estuary Partnership, Open Space Institute, and an anonymous donor.
Western Foothills Land Trust’s Twin Bridges Extension project was supported through the Open Space Institute’s Appalachian Landscapes Protection Fund, which supports the protection of climate-resilient land for wildlife and communities.
Western Foothills Land Trust protects 8,400 acres of land by ownership or easement in the greater Oxford Hills and manages more than 33 miles of recreational trails on seven preserves, including Roberts Farm in Norway.
For information, visit www.wfltmaine.org.
